Retired astronaut Jerry Carr was commander of Skylab 4 from November 1973 to February 1974 and logged more than 2,000 hours in space. In a recent TED Lesson, Carr shared his experience as a NASA astronaut, from training up until he was assigned to Skylab. It touches on the parts of astronaut life that don't happen in space—the training, the waiting, and the disappointment in having a mission canceled. But it's still riveting, especially accompanied by Sharon Colman Graham's animation.